


The Girl who Lived and the Quidditch World Cup

by DivineRedhead



Series: The Girl Who Lived [6]
Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: Cedric is the upperclassman you don't have a chance with, F/M, Gen, Harry is a girl, Quidditch World Cup, Quidditch is her true love, Seriously--Oliver's still holding a grudge, The Quidditch match that must not be named, The twins are too
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-25
Updated: 2013-03-26
Packaged: 2017-12-06 10:36:22
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/734710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DivineRedhead/pseuds/DivineRedhead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harriett Potter battles trolls and dark wizards, outruns werewolves, and casts corporeal Patronuses for fun in her spare time.  She doesn't have time for something as silly a crush.  Right...?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Up Before the Chickens

**Author's Note:**

> The following ficlets can also be found in my deviantart.com gallery under the nom de plume, Divine-Nataku.
> 
> The Harry Potter series and its characters all belong to the esteemed J.K. Rowling. I'm merely borrowing them for my own enjoyment.

Harri awoke with a sharp gasp, images from her nightmare slowly fading away as she regained consciousness. The only thing she could recall clearly was the old, dilapidated house and ancient-looking graveyard by which it stood. She'd been there in her dream, she knew, and she hadn't been alone. An attempt at recalling the faces of those with her brought a sharp twinge of pain at the lightning shaped scar adorning her brow, eliciting a small hisss of discomfort.

"Harri...?"

She blinked, bleary eyes squnting at the brown blur hovering over her. It was difficult to tell, but judging by the assortment of colors she was still in Ginny's room at the Burrow. Mr. Weasley had retrieved her from Surrey the night before after somehow getting the Dursleys to agree to allow her to accompany the Weasleys on some sort of trip. Fumbling for her glasses resting on the nightstand beside her, she donned them quickly to reveal the blur was in fact a familiar bushy-haired witch.

"Hermione!" she exclaimed, pushing herself up into a sitting position. "When'd you get here?"

"Not too long ago," the other witched answered, sitting down at on the edge of the mattress. It was actuality a chest of drawers Mrs. Weasley had transfigured into a bed, but it was far more comfortable than what she had back on Privet Drive, so she'd had no complaints. "Mr. Weasley had our fireplace temporarily connected to the Floo Network."

Harri could still see a little bit of floo power on her shoulders. The Weasley Patriarch certainly had pulled out all the stops for this trip; still, he hadn't yet mentioned where it was they were going!

"When'd you get here?"

"Last night via the Knight Bus," Harri grinned, recalling the trip she and Mr. Weasley had fondly. It certainly had been more fun when she'd known what to expect. Mr. Weasley had seemed to enjoy it as well.

The bedroom door opened up and its owner Ginny poked her head in with a grin on her face. "Oh good, you're up!" she exclaimed. "C'mon, dad wants us all ready to go in an hour."

"Is Ron up yet?"

The youngest Weasley snorted. "Of course not." she answered. "I've already been by his room twice and that lump's still dead to the world!"

Hermione pursed her lips in disapproval, pushing herself up with a muttered utterance of 'honestly' as she strode purposefully out of the room.

Harri watched her go with a small chuckle. "Looks like we're about to get treated to a show, huh?"

Ginny grinned back. "We should call it, 'What happens when an unstoppable force meets an un-wakeable object?'" She craned her ear towards the door, listening out for any sounds. A few moments passed before she was rewarded with a high pitched yelp following by Ron's signature cry of 'Bloody Hell'. This of course, was followed from a sharp call from Mrs. Weasley several floors below, chastising about his language.

Harri soaked all of this in, unable to keep the wide grin from spreading across her face. She loved coming to Ottery St Catchpole; it was so much different from the dull, cookie-cutter drudgery of Surrey. Although rickety and mismatched, oftentimes held in place by more magic than moulding, Harri would choose the Burrow over Number 4 Privet Drive in a heartbeat! Yes, she was often victim to Mrs. Weasley's coddling (apparently she was still too thin for the matriarch's liking), and subject to an occasional prank from the Twins, but outside of Hogwards it was the only real place that felt like home.

She'd almost had a chance at a home of her own... Harri closed her eyes, her thoughts drifting to her godfather, Sirius Black. Before the debacle at Whomping Willow last term, he'd invited her to come and live with him. She'd literally jumped at the chance - finally she'd be free of the Dursleys, free to live with someone that _actually _cared about her! Sirius had done so much to protect her so that they could be family again...__

__It's just too bad the Ministry had had different ideas._ _

__The fact Peter Pettigrew was in fact alive had forced them to acknowledge Sirius' innocence in th massacre at Godric's Hollow. However, despite the fact that they finally had the truth in hand, the Ministry seemed intent on dragging its feet in pardoning him. Of course, it didn't help that the true culprit had managed to escape the Aurors before a trial could be arranged, or the fact that their previous suspect/witness had escaped custody and had yet to present himself for questioning. The last she'd heard from him he was laying low somewhere below the equator... At least, that's what she assumed from the large tropical bird that had delivered his last letter._ _

__Peculiar and unecessarily flashy, yes... but Harri was glad to take it as a sign that Azkaban hadn't broken him completely._ _

__The Infamous Marauder Padfoot was crazy... crazy like a fox. Or a big, black dog that resembled the Grim._ _

__"Harri..." A hand waved in front of her face, drawing her out of her reverie. Ginny was watching her now with a touch of concern. "You alright? You were miles away just now."_ _

__The brunette chuckled, dragging a hand through her sleep-tussled hair. She glanced out the window, noting the pre-dawn light creeping over the trees in the distance. "Guess I'm not used to being up before the chickens." She stretched, letting out a loud yawn. "Any reason why we're getting up so early? Are we going camping?"_ _

__The redhead shrugged. "Beats me. All I know is that dad wants us ready to head out soon. He wouldn't tell me anything."_ _

__"I guess I better get a move on then," Harri replied, throwing back the patchwork quilt so that she could clamber out of bed. "We wouldn't want to get left behind."_ _

__Ginny grinned. "And miss out on the fun? No way!"_ _


	2. Awkward Introductions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A summer holiday trip with the Weasleys... What could possibly go wrong?

"Bloody hell," Ron exclaimed irritably, his freckled face still flushed in mortification as the travelling group made their way off of the Burrow grounds. "You can't just burst into a man's room like that unnanounced! It's just not right!"

Hermione made a large show of rolling her eyes, keeping her gaze fixed pointedly ahead. "Yes, Ronald..." she murmured drolly. "So you've said..."

He paused, floundering a bit at her nonchalance. "Right... so, now you know..."

The bushy haired witch shook her head lightly, drew a book out of the satchel slung over her shoulders, and began reading at a dog-eared page halfway through. The youngest Weasley boy gawked at this; how was it she wasn't even concerned?!

"Poor ickle Ronnie-kins," one of the twins chortled as they approached from behind. "Caught out in his unmentionables! What a tragedy!"

"Too true, too true," tsked the other. "But the question is: who's scarred for life? Ronnie-kins or widdle Hermione!"

"Oi!" Both Ron and Hermione's faces flushed, despite the fact the latter's was hidden behind the safety of her book.

"Settle down back there, you lot, settle down," Mr. Weasley admonished, his lips quirking slightly.

"I hate to ask, dad, but are we there yet?" Ginny asked plaintively as she and the others followed after the Weasley patriarch. Once everyone had been rounded up – not long after sunrise, if her sleep addled brain recalled correctly – Arthur Weasley led a group of consisting of herself, the twins, Ron, Harri, and Hermione away from the Burrow and on a hike up one of the largest hills in Ottery St. Catchpole. After walking for what seemed like hours, her patience was just about at its limit. She was beat!

Her father glanced back at her with a grin. "Almost there, dearest," he promised.

Inwardly she rolled her eyes, elbowing the twin that snickered at her, ruffling her hair playfully. She knew they were tired, too; she was just the only one who'd been willing to voice it aloud. Just where was their father taking them anyhow?

The group crested another large hill, coming upon a large open field. There, several yards away from where they stood was an old, gnarled stump. Upon that stump was an equally old, filthy-looking boot.

"Ah, here we are!" Mr. Weasley exclaimed cheerfully, approaching said stump with an excited grin. After a quick glance at his watch, the grin widened. "And we're a bit early, it seems!"

The six youths in his company stared.

"On time for what?" Ron asked.

"The Port Key, of course!"

"Port Key?" George echoed. "That mangy old thing's a port key?"

"Not what I would've picked, of course," the eldest Weasley shrugged. "But the selection wasn't up to me. I was just given its location."

"Um," Harri was still blinking at the boot in confusion, as if she was expecting it to jump up and do something spectacular. After nearly four years in the magical world, she had learned not to take things for granted. "What is a Port Key exactly?"

"It's a spelled object that enables a person to be transported from one location to another," Hermione supplied, having tucked away the book she was reading to study the old shoe more keenly. "I've never actually seen one before."

"Just about anything can be turned into a Port Key," Mr. Weasley explained. "Quite useful when you're a wizard in need of a lift."

"But why some mangy old boot?" Ron asked.

"Wouldn't want some Muggle accidentally picking it up," said Mr. Weasley. "Merlin, what a nightmare that would be!"

Given how the man worked for the _Misuse of Muggle Artifacts_ office, Harri could only imagine what a fiasco that would be.

"Ahoy there!" The group looked up, spotting two figures approaching them over the opposite hillside. The older of the two, a gray haired man with glasses raised his hand in greeting. "Good morning, Arthur!"

Mr. Weasley waved back, shaking hands with the other man once they were in range. "Amos! Good to see you've made it!"

"Yes, yes… the missus held us up a bit this morning – you know how it is," he chuckled. "It'd be a lot easier if Ced here had his Apparating license." He let out another good-natured laugh, patting his companion, a fair haired boy around the age of 16 or 17, on the shoulder. The boy merely shrugged his shoulders apologetically, smiling at them all in greeting. "Ah well, all in good time."

"Yes indeed," Mr. Weasley nodded with a grin. He then turned his attention back to the others in order to make introductions. "Everyone, this is Amos Diggory – he works for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures at the Ministry." A chorus of 'hellos' resounded from the group. "And I'm sure you all know his son Cedric."

Harri regarded the boy curiously, recognizing him as the Seeker for Hufflepuff's Quidditch team. Gryffindor's loss to them the previous year due to her brush with the Dementors immediately came to mind. It was her fall from her broom that offered Cedric the opportunity to catch the Snitch and win the game.

Given the expressions that flitted across the faces of the three Weasley boys, Harri was certain they remembered as well.

Amos Diggory remained oblivious to their reactions, regarding the group's number with an awed expression. "Quite a group you've got, Arthur," he chuckled. "They all yours?"

"With the exception of two," Arthur smiled. "We've brought along two of Ron's friends from school, Hermione Granger and Harri Potter."

Grimacing the moment her name was mentioned, Harri watched as Mr. Diggory's eyes widened, automatically zeroing in on the lightning-shaped scar adorning her brow. Harri found herself resisting the urge to brush her bangs down over her face more; sometimes she really did hate introductions…

"Merlin's beard," Mr. Diggory murmured. " _The_ Harri Potter, eh? Such a little thing... who'd've thought...?" He let out a boisterous laugh, reaching out to shake her hand. His vigorous, overzealous action left her a bit wobbly, but she managed to regain her bearings quickly as he turned her attention towards his son. "Ced's told me about you, of course… Youngest Seeker in over 100 years, eh?"

Harri glanced at the other boy, who merely smiled back at her in response. It was a nice smile, she thought; his teeth were very white and his bright hazel eyes reminded her of new shiny coins. She found herself a bit startled when her cheeks warmed in response. Embarrassed, she quickly turned her focus back to the elder Diggory. "Er… yes, sir…"

"I hear you're pretty good on a broom," Mr. Diggory went on. "No match for Ced, of course, what with last year."

The twins bristled behind her, as did Ron. Harri let out a nervous laugh for lack of anything to say. Her guess was that the loss was still a bit of a sore spot for them; she still remembered being told that Oliver had attempted to drown his sorrows – or himself, she wasn't entirely sure – in the Gryffindor locker room after their loss. She'd been more concerned about the loss of her Nimbus. And, the whole sensitivity to Dementors issue, of course...

"Dad…" Cedric murmured, unease and embarrassment coloring his tone. "I told you before, Harri fell from her broom—"

"Yes, yes, but you didn't," his father cut in, waving his words off. "The best Seeker won out in the end, is all. Harri here, knows that, don't you dear?"

Even Hermione and Ginny were bristling in indignation now, not that the elder Diggory would have noticed. Harri let out another awkward laugh, inwardly hoping for a subject change – or the sudden ability to Disapparate. Cedric caught her eye, mouthing a silent apology. It didn't lessen her embarrassment any, but it did make her feel a little better. She shrugged her shoulders carelessly, giving him a half-grin in response.

As if sensing the upset his co-worker's words were causing his young charges, Mr. Weasley diverted Mr. Diggory's attention from Harri and Quidditch with office talk. Something about a woman named Jorkins who hadn't been showing up for work…

With his father's focus elsewhere, Cedric approached the young witch with a chagrined expression. "Sorry about my father," he murmured quietly. "He gets a little carried away sometimes…"

"It's okay," Harri smiled again. "You _did_ catch the Snitch."

"Yeah well, only because you were…" He paused, trying to find the right wording.

"Preoccupied?" she supplied, smirking ruefully.

"Preoccupied, yeah," he chuckled. "Still, you had a better shot at it and I didn't realize what had happened until after you'd fallen." He shoved his hands into his jacket pockets, a look of contrition passing over his face. "I wanted to have it recalled, but they wouldn't let me."

"Don't worry about it," Harri said. "This year's a whole new season."

Cedric's expression brightened, a smile returning to his face. "That's right," he agreed. A playful light entered his grey eyes as his smile turned into a grin. "We'll definitely have to have a rematch."

"A rematch?" Harri blinked again. As she studied his expression, her cheeks grew warm again. There was just something about the expression on his face and the look in his eyes that was really… nice. She glanced away with another nervous laugh, hoping he wouldn't notice the pink blush staining her cheeks. "Uh yeah… a rematch sounds… good…"

"Great!" Cedric's grin widened. "I'll look forward to it."

Her cheeks were bright red now, she was certain of it. Just what in the world was the matter with her?

"Harri? Cedric?" Mr. Weasley was waving them towards the Port Key. "It's almost time to go!"

Realizing they had been standing a few paces away from the group, they ambled over to join the others around the boot. Placing a hand on it just as the others had, Harri puzzled as Mr. Weasley began counting down. What was it that was supposed to happen?

Before she could voice the question aloud, she experienced the strangest sensation – like a hook latching itself behind her navel.

"Wha--?" The rest of her exclamation was cut off as Harri suddenly felt herself being yanked forward, the world around her vanishing in a whirling flash of light and color.


	3. Attraction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> That Diggory boy's something else, but Harri's always gone crazy for a well-tuned racing broom.

"Wha--?" The rest of her exclamation was cut off as Harri suddenly felt herself being yanked forward, the world around her vanishing in a whirling flash of light and color. It ended quickly however; no sooner than she'd felt herself transported, Harri tumbled headlong into the dirt, dazed and disoriented.

"Bloody hell…" Ron grumbled from somewhere behind her. Opening her eyes, she saw Hermione and the other Weasley children sprawled out on the ground around her. Only Mr. Weasley and the two Diggorys were on their feet.

"So that's a Port Key, huh?" Harri muttered, pushing herself up on her elbows. To her dismay, the world still seemed to be spinning just slightly. "I think I'll just stick to the Knight bus, thanks…"

A soft chuckle resounded from above her and a hand appeared in her field of vision. Adjusting her glasses - which had somehow managed to slip beneath her nose - she looked upwards to see Cedric smiling down at her kindly. Placing her hand in his timidly, she allowed the older boy to pull her to her feet easily. 

"It's not bad once you get the hang of it," he said, placing his hand on her shoulder to steady her. "You just need to land feet first."

"Easier said than done," Harri laughed, although she found herself keenly aware of how warm his hands were; the one grasping hers especially. Blushing once again, she discreetly slid it free, stepping back under the pretense of brushing dust and debris from her jacket.

Behind them, Hermione and Ginny shared a look.

"Well, Arthur," Mr. Diggory said, turning to the Weasley patriarch. He gestured to a small booth where two tired looking wizards stood directing others arriving via other portkeys. Beyond them, Harri could make out hundreds and hundreds of tents and pavilions spread out over the hillside in the distance. "This is where we part ways. According to our tickets, our spot's over this way."

Mr. Weasley shook his hand heartily. "We'll be seein' you then, Amos. Cedric, always a pleasure."

"Likewise, sir." Cedric waved to the others, casting Harri another smile before following after his father.

"Wow…" Ginny chuckled once they were out of sight.

"What's the matter?" Harri asked.

"Wow, indeed," Hermione giggled. At the brunette's blank expression, she blinked incredulously. "Don't tell me you didn't notice?"

"Notice what?" Ron asked.

"Harri being hit on." Ginny was grinning impishly now.

"What?" the brunette gawked. "By who?"

"By Cedric!" Hermione exclaimed. "He was shamelessly flirting with you!"

"Come off it!" Ron snorted.

"Flirting?" Harri echoed. Her mind went back to the way Cedric had smiled at her; it took a conscious effort not to blush again. "With me? Why?"

"Maybe he fancies you!" Ginny giggled. She seemed to be the most excited by the prospect.

"You two are talkin' rubbish," the second youngest Weasley snorted. "Harri and Cedric?"

"And just why not?" his sister huffed.

"He's older than she is!"

"Age shouldn't matter," Hermione proclaimed.

"Yeah," Ginny chimed in. "I'm dating Dean Thomas and he's a whole year older than me."

"Really?" Ron's blue eyes narrowed in displeasure. "Since when?"

"Since last fall." She answered, rolling her eyes slightly at her brother's disgruntled expression. "He's really sweet."

The older boy grumbled irritably under his breath. "Barring the fact that my little sister is dating a cradle robber," he then said loudly. Ginny shot him a dirty look. "Ced's a decent bloke an' all, but he's a Hufflepuff!"

"So?" Hermione huffed. "It shouldn't matter what house he's in! Right, Harri? Harri…?"

Unfortunately for the bushy-haired witch, Harri had already tuned out of the conversation, thoughts of the handsome boy and his distracting smile forgotten. Her green eyed focus was now on what lay in the distance. Beyond the tents and pavilions lay a large structure with walls made a gold. Large parapets had been erected on each side, banners and streamers of green and burgundy flapping cheerfully in the wind. It wasn't until that she noticed the masses of people making their way up into shiny bleacher stands that she realized it was in fact a stadium.

A large, brightly lit Quidditch stadium.

Several wizards in brightly flashy zipped by them on brooms, circling the flag posts surrounding the stadium. Harri let out a delighted gasp as they flew overhead. Other witches and wizards in the distance began to cheer wildly, waving flags over their heads as they made their way towards the structure.

"Wicked…" the twins exclaimed in unison.

"Wow…"

"Wha…" the brunette continued to stare in awe, all thoughts of the smiling, fair haired boy momentarily forgotten. Just where were they? "What is this…?"

"Oh this?" Mr. Weasley was grinning widely now, looking like the cat that got the canary. "This, kids, is the Quidditch World Cup."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, these chapters are actually disjointed ficlets I wrote originally over on deviantart.com (look me up under Divine-Nataku). This particular tale is finished for now, but stay tuned as I tend to add to them as the inspiration strikes.


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